User:SPUI/RI 10

Rhode Island State Highway 10 is a numbered State Highway running 4.7 miles in Rhode Island. The freeway serves as a bypass of downtown Providence, connecting with Interstate 95 both at and south of downtown, and is known as the Huntington Expressway. It also serves as a connection to the US 6 freeway west towards I-295 and Connecticut.

Route
RI 10 takes the following route through the State:
 * Cranston: 2.1 miles; RI 12 to Providence city line
 * Huntington Expressway
 * Providence: 2.6 miles; Cranston city line to Interstate 95
 * Huntington Expressway

History
RI 10 has a long and colorful history dating back to the early 1950s.

The first section of RI 10 was built as the Dennis J. Roberts Expressway, the first freeway in Rhode Island, and was known by locals simply as the Olneyville Bypass (photo at right). It existed as a bypass of Olneyville Square which, at the time, was one of the worst traffic choke points in Providence. At that time, the RI 10 number had not yet been assigned; the Olneyville Bypass was partly US 6.

The next section of RI 10 to be built was south from Olneyville to RI 2 where it ended at a trumpet interchange. Once this section was opened to traffic, RI 2 was moved onto this section of freeway, ending at the Olneyville Bypass. When RI 10 opened south of I-95, RI 2 was moved back, and RI 10 received its number.

For many years, RI 10 headed north from the end of the Olneyville Bypass along Harris Avenue, Eagle Street, Valley Street, River Avenue, Oneil Street, Veazie Street and Branch Avenue, ending at RI 146. As of 2005, there is still an old cardinal direction plate reading "SOUTH" on River Avenue; however, the RI 10 shield that it went with is long removed.

RI 10 was originally planned to extend south from its current terminus at RI 12, along RI 117, ending at RI 117A's current southern terminus. The interchange with RI 12 includes unused space under the bridge for the extension. That interchange has been reconfigured since opening. There was once a direct ramp from RI 10 to RI 12 east; the direct ramp is now from RI 12 east to RI 10.

When the first section of the Route 6-10 Connector was built, extending the freeway to Dean Street (and removing RI 10 from its surface alignment), the northbound ramp from RI 10 to Harris Street was removed and a ramp from Tobey Street to RI 10 southbound was added, replacing the closed ramp from Broadway. The abutments where the northbound ramp used to cross Amtrak's Northeast Corridor and northbound Harris Avenue still exist. The ramp from US 6 east to Westminster Street was also closed around this time.

The other half of the Route 6-10 Connector took RI 10 to an interchange with I-95, with a continuation to the new Memorial Boulevard downtown, and US 6 was rerouted along the connector and I-95.

When I-84 was planned to enter Providence via US 6, RI 10 from US 6 south to I-95 or RI 12 was briefly considered for an I-184.